DATE: Monday, September 29, 1997            TAG: 9709260017

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B8   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Opinion 

SOURCE: BY HUNTER B. ANDREWS 

                                            LENGTH:   69 lines

ANOTHER VIEW: THE PLIGHT OF VIRGINIA'S COLLEGES

U. S. News and World Report's 1998 national college rankings hit the newsstand this month, and once again Virginia has reason to boast. By all quality measures, the University of Virginia is the best public university in the country, and William & Mary is close behind. James Madison University and Mary Washington College are ranked the top two public regional institutions in the South. In fact, Virginia is second only to California in the number of its colleges and universities ranked among the top 25 public national universities and second to none in the regional rankings of public institutions.

Not bad for a state that ranks 43rd out of 50 in state funding for its colleges and universities, and one that spends less educating students than nearly all the other Southern states. The facts speak for themselves. In 1995-96, North Carolina spent $5,874 per full-time equivalent student, Virginia spent $3,736, a difference of $2,138. To match North Carolina would take $460 million more per year. (Interestingly, North Carolina has a lower per-capita income than Virginia, but higher personal income taxes, corporate income taxes, sales tax and gasoline taxes than Virginia.)

Virginia's public colleges and universities deserve a big round of applause for these national rankings. They didn't earn these honors because of the state's funding record for higher education in the 1990s - rather, they did so despite it, reaping the dividends of significant state investments made in the 1970s and '80s. Through resourcefulness and creativity, restructuring and the considerable generosity of private donors, our colleges and universities have maintained national reputations that far exceed their well-below-average state funding. But we will only be able to live off our legacy, defying the laws of gravity for so long.

No. 1 ranked U.Va. received about $119 million from the state each year. UNC-Chapel Hill, which placed fourth in the national list of public national universities, enrolls only about 500 more students than U.Va., yet it receives $358 million a year in state funds - more than three times the amount U.Va. receives.

JMU, also the top institution in its category, receives about $39 million from Virginia each year. Appalachian State University, another fine regional university, ranked fourth. Curiously, this North Carolina institution enrolls 1,000 fewer students than JMU, yet it receives more than half-again as much state funding as its Virginia counterpart.

In fact, in constant dollars (adjusted for inflation), eight of Virginia's senior public colleges and universities spend less money to educate each student today than they did in 1990.

In 1996, the General Assembly provided an additional $200 million in sorely needed state funds for our colleges and universities - an essential investment and the first significant increase since the 1980s - which begins to put Virginia back on track with other states who are competing for the same good jobs and skilled workers.

In a recent poll of Virginia voters, percent 38 of those responding indicated that education was their chief concern; reducing taxes ranking a distant third. A poll that appeared in The Wall Street Journal on Sept. 19 showed that 49 percent of the nation's voters believed that spending on education and health care was the highest priority.

Voters in Virginia understand this connection between investments in higher education and higher paying jobs. In this debate, the public appears to appreciate the stakes better than the politicians. Next January, the General Assembly, and our new governor, will again consider the investment Virginia should make in our public colleges and universities, and, again, the needs are great. Much more than magazine rankings rides on their decisions. MEMO: Former state Sen. Hunter B. Andrews served as chair of the

Virginia Senate Finance Committee for many years and is a longtime

supporter of higher education in Virginia.

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